Europe’s best women’s teams fight for Olympic ticket

Women’s European Olympic Qualification Tournament 2008
HALLE (GER), 15 January 2008 – The year 2008 immediately starts with an extremely important tournament for the best women’s volleyball countries of Europe. On Tuesday, the Women’s European Olympic Qualification Tournaments initiate in Halle, Germany. Eight teams from the world’s leading volleyball continent will fight for only one ticket for the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games.

The winner of the FIVB World Cup, played in Japan in November 2007, already secured a spot for the Olympic Games 2008. The second European participant will be the winner of the European Olympic Qualification Tournament here in Halle; an eight-team tournament in which the best not yet qualified teams will participate.

The Russian top team with Shashkova, Safronova and Gamova is the main favorite for the highly wanted Olympic ticket, while Serbia, Poland, the Netherlands as well as host Germany are lying in wait for a surprise. Turkey is a dangerous outsider. Croatia and Romania complete the event in Germany.
‘We play in Germany and believe in our qualities,” said German head coach Giovanni Guidetti before the competition. ‘But we all know that this qualification tournament is an extremely difficult one. Six teams have a chance to win.”

The eight participants will execute a single round robin competition in the pool phase from 15 till 18 January. The first two teams of each pool proceed to the crossed semifinals, scheduled for 19 January. The winner of the final on Sunday 20 January will be qualified for the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing. The best two non qualified European teams according to the FIVB World Ranking will get another chance in May 2008 during the World Olympic Qualification Tournaments where another three teams will get their ticket for the Olympic Games 2008.
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